1. Field of the Invention
This invention is generally related to continuous processes for making bulk cheese and is specifically directed to the transfer system for transferring cheese discharged from the processing system into a shipping container.
2. Cross Reference to Related Application
This application is related to the co-pending applications entitled: "Continuous Cheese Former for Bulk Cheese", by Allen J. Pittelko, filed on Aug. 7, 1991, Ser. No. 07/741,319 and "Process for Making Bulk Cheese", by Allen J. Pittelko, filed on Aug. 7, 1991, Ser. No. 07/741,320, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,146,845.
3. Description of the Prior Art
Bulk cheese has typically been made in 600-650 pound blocks or 500 pound barrels. In the prior art, the bulk cheese blocks and barrels were made by feeding a curd mixture into a suitably sized container such as a large barrel or drum, drawing air away from the mixture in the container, probing the container with a vacuum tube, compressing the cheese to squeeze out the moisture, tipping to drain whey out of the open top of the container, and drawing a vacuum on the perimeter of the cheese to draw out the moisture and air to establish the right consistency. Basically, the entire process was formed in the container in which the cheese was both stored and shipped.
Over the years, cheese manufacturing equipment and processes have developed to the point where smaller quantities of cheese such as, by way of example, 40 pound blocks or the like can be made in a continuous process. In this process, the cheese is generally manufactured in a vertical tower wherein the curd is drawn into the tower and the vacuum draw is used to separate the water, air and whey from the curd, with the curd collecting at the bottom of the tower and compressing to form cheese. The bottom of the tower is then opened to release the cheese which is cut into predetermined size blocks. The continuous process for manufacturing the 40 pound cheese blocks has substantial advantages over the cheese making methods wherein each finished unit of cheese is made in the cheese storage and shipping container. Specifically, using the continuous process provides a higher quality cheese with a better controlled consistency, reduces the amount of space required to make the cheese, reduces the labor involved in the various steps and facilitates clean-up while enhancing sanitation of the operation. The specific advantage of the continuous process is that the cheese is ready for cooling and shipment once it is removed from the tower. An example of a cheese block former for continuously making 40 pound blocks of cheese is the CBF Cheese Block Former manufactured by Damrow Company, Fond du Lac, Wis. The CBF Cheese Block Former is adapted to process 1,500 pounds per hour, producing the 40 pound blocks. When functioning at full capacity, the CBF former can produce approximately forty 40 pound blocks per hour.
While the continuous process for making 40 pound blocks has greatly enhanced the cheese making methods of the prior art, it has been heretofore impossible to make large batches of cheese such as the 600-650 pound blocks and 500 pound barrels without making single batch units of cheese in the containers in which the cheese is both stored and shipped. Typically, a 40 pound block of cheese is rectangular in shape and is 7 inches high by 14 inches deep by 11 inches wide. In contrast, a 640 pound block of cheese is 28 inches high by 28 inches deep by 22 inches wide. A 500 pound barrel is approximately 34 inches high with a diameter of 22 inches.
A major problem associated with making large batch cheese in a continuous process is the proper removal and shaping of the cheese as it is discharged from the process. While 40 pound blocks are a sufficiently small mass to basically retain their shape as they are discharged from the continuous cheese making process, the large bulk of cheese associated with the large blocks or barrels have a sufficient enough mass to collapse under their own weight if not properly contained as they are discharged form the manufacturing system. Inability to properly discharge the cheese can become as significant an issue in making continuous cheese in bulk quantities as the processing of the cheese itself.